This is a story of hope. A superstar is trying to "make the difference" and choosing to give back. He made a career out of cricket. Retired from playing but never stopped giving back what he earned. I am talking about Jonty Rhodes, the South African cricket superstar, who is now mentoring a franchise cricket team in Western Nepal. I have been following his tweets, and trust me when I say this; he is making the difference in showcasing Nepalese passion for cricket. While he is promoting Nepali cricket, he is letting his followers and the rest of the world know how this small town in Western Nepal epitomizes Nepal and South Asian culture in general.
Jonty Rhodes is a former South African cricket player who is regarded as the best fielder ever. He is known for his skills on the field. He managed to grab the eyeballs with his fielding when the dominance in cricket has always been either batting or bowling. He changed the notion of fielding and showed why fielding should be as outstanding as batting and bowling to win a game. His influence is global, and even after his retirement, he is traveling the world sharing his knowledge and passion for cricket. He worked as a fielding coach of Mumbai Indians, an IPL team, and he is now in Nepal mentoring a local cricket team.
He is also an ambassador of Dhangadhi Premier League (DPL), a local cricket tournament in Nepal that is helping Nepal cricket grow by providing a platform to local Nepali players. As he is required to do, he is making the difference by letting people into Nepali cricket and telling the story. As an international superstar with the fan following and influence, he can help to disseminate the positive outlook of local players and passion for the game to a global audience.
He has been tweeting a series of tweets lately from Dhangadhi. They are not always about cricket. They are about society in general, passion for cricket, local players, kids in the field, motivation to play the game even without access to necessary infrastructure and right tools, and most importantly about how he admires little things in life people would generally take for granted.
I follow him on twitter, and reading his tweets I respect him more as a person. Yes, he may have been paid to represent the tournament, but you cannot buy a cricketer of his stature to go to a small town and do what he is doing unless he wants that. He is living his life, portraying the struggle of local cricketers and creating positive energy around Nepal cricket to help it grow. Yes, he is an outsider, and he does not know much about Nepal cricket, but these association with international superstars will help Nepal cricket to establish connections and grow in confidence. Just imagine, how confident a local cricketer would be if he can get fielding and batting tips from one of the greatest cricketers of all times.
I commented on one of his tweets requesting him to create a documentary showcasing his days in Dhangadhi. I think it will be an inspiring show to capture his dedication and interaction with local people. If only he manages to read my tweet, but I will keep trying.
If somebody told me ten years ago that Jonty will tweet about Dhangadhi in ten years, I would have labelled that person a lunatic. But, in 2019, he is tweeting and doing the unthinkable. These tweets from Jonty show how far has Nepal cricket came from where it was ten years ago. The situation of Nepal cricket also shows how influential and important the private sector is for the development of the game.
We can also see the current opportunities in Nepal cricket. Businesses are willing to invest, the great players are eager to help, and the national players are willing to play despite not having essential amenities for the game. Yes, there are problems. Players have not been paid in years, and the cricket administration has been defunct for three years now. Necessary cricket infrastructure is lacking. But, we can still be hopeful as there are players motivated to play cricket, the captain and national team members are sacrificing their lives to make sure they play and win games without any material gains. Kudos to the players to create a current positive cricketing scenario where they are grabbing national and international attention. Hope they win and turnaround the situation to maintain the rapid pace of cricketing success we have witnessed in recent past.
In the meantime, we don’t mind Jonty Rhodes tweeting those amazing life-gazing tweets from Dhangadhi. Keep fielding mate, and batting as well.
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